KINGSTON, Jamaica – Minister of Education and Youth Fayval Williams says the most recent report from the National Education Inspectorate (NEI) shows that most schools are performing satisfactorily in the area of leadership and management.

The Minister however noted that areas of weaknesses remain that need to be addressed.

“These include adherence to our procurement guidelines and operating within budget. The research has shown that leadership, teaching, and learning are the most fundamental areas that are critical for improved performance of our students,” Williams said.

“The schools in Jamaica that have attained satisfactory rating and above from the National Education Inspectorate, have shown evidence of good leadership and excellent teaching and learning programmes,” she added.

The Minister was speaking at the annual back-to-school conference in region one, held at Jamaica College on Friday.

She also lauded the work of the National College for Educational Leadership in providing training for teachers and school leaders.

“We are therefore pleased with the work being done, and we are also proud of the work of the Jamaica Teaching Council that continues to provide professional development for our teachers in various areas of curriculum, assessment, behaviour modification, special education and coping strategies to manage the 21st century teaching learning process,” Williams said.

In the meantime, the Minister reported that the Ministry was able to deliver 6,483 pieces of furniture to infant and primary schools for the 2022/23 academic year.

“We are happy to report that the Ministry is continuing with the manufacture of school furniture from scratch by high school students. The furniture is used by the school, and some are sold to [other] schools. Projects are carried out under the careful guidance and supervision of teachers. Sometimes suitably qualified and very skilled persons at the community level are also contracted as facilitators/supervisors,” she said.

She also informed that as of May 2023, the Ministry distributed over 9000 high-quality laptops, to over 170 schools, to replace outdated computers.

In addition, nearly 90 percent of teachers have redeemed their laptop e-vouchers.

– JIS